2 Charged With Illegal Acupuncture

March 26, 1986|By Dave Schneidman.

The president of the Illinois State Acupuncture Association and another acupuncturist were charged Tuesday by state and local officials with practicing medicine without a license after officials said they diagnosed undercover investigators for illnesses.

Two complaints were filed against Julie Duffy, president of the association, and three complaints were filed against Joseph Mitchell, according to the Cook County state`s attorney`s office and the Illinois Department of Registration and Education.

Duffy and Mitchell have offices at Chicago Acupuncture Associates, 1222 W. Grace St., the site of the Midwest Center for the Study of Oriental Medicine, which teaches acupuncture.

Under state law, acupuncture can be performed by only a licensed physician or chiropractor. A conviction for the unlicensed practice of medicine can result in a fine of up to $1,000 and up to one year in jail.

Glen Crick, deputy director of the Department of Registration and Education, said the department would ``continue to investigate complaints regarding the unlicensed practice of medicine`` and added that he expects several more complaints to be issued in connection with acupuncture treatment in the state.

After the arrests, an attorney representing the school and the acupuncture association said: ``Our graduates are more qualified to perform acupuncture treatments than anyone in the state, and they`re the ones being arrested for it.``

The attorney, William Hourigan of Wheaton, said physicians and chiropractors are not required to have any training to perform acupuncture, and graduates of the school receive three years of training.

Hourigan said the school is accredited by the National Commission for the Certification of Acupuncturists in Manhasset, N.Y. A school spokesman said Duffy and Mitchell are graduates.

Hourigan said he expects to sue in federal court, charging that the state is violating the right of trained acupuncturists to practice.

He said the state needs to define acupuncture and set up a procedure for regulating it.